Will Boeing/Porsche pact turbocharge urban mobility?

By Flight International2019-10-18T19:05:00+01:00

There have been hints before that the automotive sector was looking with interest at the potential offered by urban air mobility (UAM) vehicles, but the pact between Boeing and Porsche provides the most concrete evidence so far.

There have been hints before that the automotive sector was looking with interest at the potential offered by urban air mobility (UAM) vehicles, but the pact between Boeing and Porsche provides the most concrete evidence so far.

Boeing

It certainly makes sense for automotive manufacturers to have some involvement.

Driven by consumer demand, the sector is already feeling intense pressure to be cleaner and greener, with the rise of electric cars the most obvious representation of the phenomenon.

Although less limited by weight considerations, those producing electric-powered ground vehicles are already making strides in improving battery technology to make them better, cheaper and lighter, benefitting aerospace.

And if the UAM sector takes off as forecast, then production techniques that Henry Ford would be proud of will be required to meet demand.

Mind you, automotive manufacturers have other reasons to look to the skies. If people and packages are forecast to abandon ground transportation, then it follows that the biggest losers will be the firms building those vehicles.

It is also worth remembering that the consumer drive for more sustainable cities has been fueled by events such as the emissions scandal involving a certain Porsche-owned car maker.

On paper, the combination of the two manufacturers could represent a powerful player in the segment, particularly at the higher “luxury” end.

But one should not automatically assume that the expertise of the two parties can be welded together to deliver a class-leading product.

In such a new area of business, perhaps an outsider may be a better bet to deliver an airborne 911.

Airbus managed to deliver 24 aircraft during May, although the manufacturer took no new orders for the entire month. But it also recorded no cancellations in May which meant overall net orders remained at 299 for the first five months of the year. It delivered four long-haul aircraft ...

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